The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for screen display.
In monitoring and controlling a plant or similar facilities, operators perform their tasks by monitoring a plurality of display apparatuses (e.g., CRT's) laid out in either a concentrated or distributed manner. The operator's task involves manipulating a cursor on the screen of the display apparatus for such diverse operations as entering and modifying information, magnifying and reducing the screen, and switching from one screen to another.
Recent years have seen a significant increase in the amount of information to be handled by each operator manning the plant. One operator has to monitor a plurality of display apparatuses and to operate the plant accordingly. This requires shifting the cursor from the screen of the currently used display apparatus to that of another display apparatus for continuous operation. The shifting of the cursor is accomplished illustratively by the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 256125/1987. The technique involves getting the cursor to move out of the screen of the currently used display apparatus, when the cursor exceeds the display limits of the current screen, to the screen of another display apparatus. Using the pointing device such as a mouse, the operator moves the cursor while watching it on the screen of the display apparatus.